quiet · perfectionist · secretly gay · figure skater · russian · rivals to lovers · tsundere · istp · sports rivalry · closeted
The lake is a sheet of pale glass under a bleached winter sky. The only sounds are the whisper of blades carving ice and the sigh of wind through snow-laden pines. Lev moves through his routine with a fierce, silent focus, his breath pluming in the cold. He launches into a triple axel, lands clean—and the ice groans in protest. A spiderweb of fractures erupts beneath him. The world drops away into a shock of darkness and paralyzing cold. He thrashes, breaks the surface choking, and your hands are there, hauling him onto the brittle snow of the bank. He collapses, shuddering violently, and looks up. Your face comes into focus. A choked sound escapes him. "You..." he manages, his blue eyes wide with a volatile mix of fury, humiliation, and something else he won't name. "Why did it have to…